Salt Beef

[robin]

I've noticed a couple of postings which mention making salt beef. Has anyone got a good preferably straight forward recipie please ?

Thanks

[sausagemaker]

Hi Robin

I have never tried this but the link below seems OK

http://thefoody.com/meat/saltbeef.html

regards
sausagemaker

[Oddley]

Hi robin I had a look at the recipe above and the ingoing Nitrate level is far too high in my opinion. If we say 1 teaspoon is 5 grams of saltpetre for 2.7 kg of meat that works out as an ingoing amount 1851 ppm or mg/kg.

I would be a lot happier to use 2 grams of saltpetre which for that weight would give an ingoing amount of 740 ppm or mg/kg of Nitrate.

[aris]

Perhaps the recipe had a long storage period in mind - so the nitrate would dissipate by the time the beef was consumed? You have a better grasp of the nitrite/nitrate issues than me - so i'm curious to know your opinion.

[Oddley]

aris the highest amount that I have worked out is in the well known tried and tested bacon recipe that was posted by deb and written in a book by Maynard Davis and without checking this came out at about 1180 ppm.

Remember this would be cured from about three weeks and then a number of weeks hanging time I did all the calculation for deb. If you want to look it's at the link below.

I have come to the conclusion that all being equal and without the inclusion of sodium ascorbate that after an amount of time the residual amount of Nitrates/ Nitrites will even out as for any ingoing Nitrate 75% will be converted to Nitrite and the residual Nitrite will be 10% - 20% of the ingoing or converted amount. This is my own thoughts on the matter after reading and thinking about it. As you know finding concrete evidence is like finding a needle in several haystacks.

So if we use this and work out the salt beef recipe with an ingoing amount of 1851 ppm

75% of 1851 = 1388.25 of nitrate converted to nitrite at 10-20% residual this means that there would be between 139 ppm and 278 ppm Nitrite when you eat it. The bottom limit is OK but if you hit the top limit this would be slightly dodgy the highest recommended amount of residual Nitrite is in Europe 175 ppm or mg/kg that is for bacon. You would also have 463 ppm residual of Nitrate the recommended amount residual is 250 ppm in Europe.

http://forum.sausagemaking.org/viewtopi ... highlight=

[robin]

Thanks for your advice guys. I'd be a bit worried about using nitrates to be honest. I've used Franco's cure mix for bacon without any worries or problems. I wonder if there is potential for a similar commercially available mix for salt beef ? Presumably it could be done if there was a demand for it ?

[Oddley]

robin there is nothing stopping you using Franco's bacon cure for the salt beef. I have adjusted the recipe below to use it.

Salt Beef

2.7kg (6lb) Beef Brisket, lean
215g (7 1/2 oz) Coarse Salt
3 tbsp Soft Brown Sugar
2 tbsp Black Peppercorns, coarsely crushed
1 tbsp Coriander Seeds, coarsely crushed
10 Juniper Berries, crushed
81 grams Franco's Traditional bacon cure (Calculated at 30 gm per kg)
1 Bay Leaf, crushed
� tbsp Ground Mace
� tbsp Ground Ginger
� tbsp Whole Cloves, crushed

Place the beef in a ceramic or plastic container (metal would be unsuitable), rub half of the salt well into the beef.
Cover the container with clingfilm and refrigerate for 12 hours, turning once.
Remove the meat from the container, rinse and dry well with kitchen towels.
Mix all of the other together.
Rub the mixture into the beef, ensuring its whole area is covered.
Place the beef into the cleaned container.
Cover with clingfilm and refrigerate for 10 days.
Turn the beef every day.
After 10 days, remove from the refrigerator, rinse well.
Place into a saucepan containing simmering unsalted water.
Simmer gently for 3-3� hours or until tender.
If serving hot, add vegetables (onions, carrot, swedes, turnips, etc.) for the final 35-40 minutes of cooking.
If serving cold. place the beef into a tight fitting container, cover with a plate (or similar), stand a heavy weight on top.
When cold place in the refrigerator overnight.
Serve with Horseradish Sauce or Mustard & Horseradish Sauce.

[robin]

Thanks Oddley I'll probably give that a try. I'll let you know how it turns out.

[TobyB]

Quick tip on serving salt beef.... following the boiling process place it into a hot oven (200-220 degrees C) for 15-20 minutes to roast the outside. This crisps up the outside and any fat and makes it look more appetising as well as being delicious. Don't do it for any longer as otherwise you'll spoil it.

I did this with a bit I salted using an immersion in brine from a Hugh F-W book and it was really great

[Epicurohn]

Are there different purity levels for saltpetre (KNO2)?

I've noticed these a dry cure recipies. Would Oddley's Nitrate/Nitrite residuals also apply for brine curing? I assume a lot of the KNO2 will remain in solution in the brine. Comments?

Thanks,

David

[Oddley]

Meat will absorbed 8 - 10% it's own weight in brine without pumping. The weight in milligrams of nitrite /nitrate in that absorbed weight of brine will give the milligrams per kilogram or ppm.

I believe Franco's supplier is a reputable one therefore the purity would be within EU rules which are quite strict.

Please don't take my residuals as gospel do some research before relying on them.

[robin]

I tried Oddley's suggested version last week and the results were pretty good. Tried some hot and some cold. I'd make this again. Thanks for all the suggestions guys.